Currently, the WiFi Docking program in the WiFi Alliance is defining a set of protocols between a Wireless Dockee (WD) and Wireless Docking Center (WDC) to facilitate WiFi docking. In general, WiFi docking allows a roaming WiFi device to access peripherals such as printers or displays that are connected either wired or wirelessly in a WiFi network. One goal of the WiFi docking program of the WiFi Alliance is to not require any changes on the peripheral side to allow for current WiFi peripherals to be used for docking.
As part of a docking session setup, a WDC provides the following to the WD: (1) A list of peripherals that are available and with which the WD can have a docking session facilitated by the WDC; (2) The state of each peripheral is signalled to the WD as: (a) Available, (b) Occupied, (c) Sleep, (d) Disconnected, or (e) Unpaired; and (3) A single sign-on facility for a WD to facilitate security setup with the peripherals, which allows the WDC to facilitate security setup between WD and the peripherals.
Once the WD selects a “Peripheral,” the WDC expects that the peripheral is in the state “Available” for use by the WD during the docking session. This will also allow for user experience a WD would expect from the peripherals offered by WDC. However, this would mean the WDC should have already set up a link with the selected peripheral, thereby constraining the use of the selected peripheral by other devices in the environment.
For example, if a printer device is offered by the WDC as a peripheral, then the printer should be already configured to connect to the WDC, as an example via WiFi Direct (possibly using persistent connection). The peripheral should also be available for use immediately once the WD picks the peripheral.
More particularly, in a home environment, a WD device would like to use the printer via the WDC if it is already docked to allow for better power saving (i.e. there is no need to establish connection with the printer separately). But if the WD selects the peripheral, and it doesn't use it, then the peripheral cannot be used by another device (i.e. it cannot be part of another WiFi Direct Group, until and unless the printer creates a Group). The trade off in this scenario is providing a consistent docking experience (i.e. connectivity and use of peripherals) and also at the same time allowing autonomy for peripherals to be used flexibly (i.e. not constrained because they are used in docking environment).
Conventionally, either the peripheral was part of the docking session or removed from the docking session. This increases the overhead (i.e. the WD has to keep adding and removing the peripheral) and doesn't allow for a WD to dynamically switch the use of a peripheral.
Accordingly there remains a need in the art for a solution addresses the problem above among others.